Narrative Lectionary for Second Sunday of Lent, 16 March 2014

Narrative Lectionary for Second Sunday of Lent, 16 March 2014

Lectionary Scriptures:

John 13:1 Now before the feast of the Passover, Jesus, knowing that his time had come that he would depart from this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he came from God, and was going to God, 4 arose from supper, and laid aside his outer garments. He took a towel, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 Then he poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. 6 Then he came to Simon Peter. He said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?”

7 Jesus answered him, “You don’t know what I am doing now, but you will understand later.”

8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet!”

Jesus answered him, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with me.”

9 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

10 Jesus said to him, “Someone who has bathed only needs to have his feet washed, but is completely clean. You are clean, but not all of you.” 11 For he knew him who would betray him, therefore he said, “You are not all clean.” 12 So when he had washed their feet, put his outer garment back on, and sat down again, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me, ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord.’ You say so correctly, for so I am. 14 If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Most certainly I tell you, a servant is not greater than his lord, neither one who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

Psalm 51:7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean.

    Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness,

    That the bones which you have broken may rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins,

    and blot out all of my iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God.

    Renew a right spirit within me.

11 Don’t throw me from your presence,

    and don’t take your holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation.

    Uphold me with a willing spirit.

Commentary on John 13:1-17 by Elisabeth Johnson

“Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father.

Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” (John 13:1).

So begins the second half of John’s Gospel. The public teaching of Jesus has been completed, and now for several chapters Jesus focuses exclusively on teaching “his own” -- his disciples -- and trying to prepare them for what is to come. The statement that “he loved them to the end” is striking. The end (telos in Greek) could mean “end” in the sense of conclusion or termination, or “end” in the sense of goal, aim, or fulfillment.

Given John’s fondness for ambiguity and multiple layers of meaning, perhaps both meanings are intended. Jesus loved his disciples to the very end of his earthly life and ministry, and he loved them fully and completely, without condition or reservation, for this was the fulfillment of his mission.

Jesus knows that his “hour” has come to depart from this world and return to the Father (13:1). He knows that the Father has given all things into his hands, and that he has come from God and is going to God (13:3). Knowing all this, he chooses to demonstrate his love for his disciples in a dramatic way by taking the role of a slave and washing their feet.

Jesus’ act of service recalls what Mary of Bethany had done for Jesus just a few days earlier, washing his feet with expensive perfume and drying them with her hair. Jesus interprets her extravagant act of love and service as an anointing for his burial (12:1-7).

In washing his disciples’ feet, Jesus simply uses water and a towel, yet the extravagance is no less. Indeed, it is nothing short of scandalous that the one who comes from God and is going to God should take on the menial task of a slave. This act points to the even greater scandal to come in the dark hours ahead, when Jesus will lay down his life, crucified on a Roman cross -- the form of execution reserved for rebels and slaves.

Peter gives voice to the scandal of Jesus’ actions. “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” When Jesus says that Peter will understand later what he is doing, Peter objects even more strongly: “You will never wash my feet.” We are reminded Peter’s objections in Mark’s Gospel when Jesus speaks of his impending suffering and death (Mark 8:32). Here, as in Mark, Jesus corrects Peter: “Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.” To which Peter responds, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!” (13:6-9).

Jesus’ next response to Peter is a bit cryptic, and perhaps makes use of a traditional proverb. “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean” (13:10). His statement seems to suggest that one’s relationship to Jesus has cleansing power that lasts. It will soon become clear how utterly dependent Peter and the others are on this gift of grace. Jesus adds, “And you are clean, though not all of you,” and the narrator explains, “For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, ‘Not all of you are clean’” (13:11).

This statement brings us to the greatest scandal of this story. It is astonishing enough that Jesus takes the role of a slave and washes the dirty feet of his disciples, but even more astounding is the fact that he does so knowing full well that they will all fail him miserably in his hour of greatest need.

Jesus insists on washing the feet of Peter, knowing full well that Peter will deny him to save his own skin. What is more, Jesus stoops to wash the feet of Judas, knowing full well that Judas has already conspired to betray him to those seeking his life. John tells us in 13:2 that “the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus,” and Jesus indicates several times in this chapter that he is fully aware of this reality (13:10-11, 18-19, 21-30). Yet even with Judas -- cold, calculating, back-stabbing Judas -- Jesus’ love remains unwavering. Jesus washes Judas’ dirty feet along with all the others.

Do as I have done to you.

Jesus then tells his disciples that they are to serve one another in the same way that he has served them. “If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you an example, that you should do as I have done to you” (13:14-15). This specific example parallels the broader “new commandment” Jesus gives in verse 34: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.”

Jesus’ example suggests that loving as he has loved means taking the role of a servant, caring for the needs of others without expecting anything in return. His example suggests that it is to do this not only for those who treat us well, but even for those who disappoint and hurt and betray us. Can Jesus really expect us to do this, to love and serve even those who fail us or stab us in the back? Are we not allowed even a few exceptions to the love commandment?

Jesus’ commandment to love one another is not a commandment to feel affection, but a commandment to act in a loving way, even when we would rather do otherwise. Of course we always fall short of God’s perfect love, but that cannot be an excuse to nurse grudges and wallow in unloving behavior. As we are washed by Jesus in God’s deep and generous love, our hearts are stretched to love more completely, fully, unwaveringly.

I am reminded of a documentary I saw some years ago on CNN, in which reporter Christiane Amanpour interviewed a woman in Rwanda named Iphigenia. She was from the Tutsi tribe, and during the Rwandan genocide of 1994, her husband and five children were clubbed and hacked to death by a mob of Hutus, including one of her neighbors.

The neighbor who had participated in the massacre spent seven years in prison and then went before a tribal court, where he asked for forgiveness from Iphigenia and the whole community. Iphigenia opened her heart and forgave her neighbor. But it did not end there. Iphigenia, a master weaver, also taught her neighbor’s wife how to weave baskets. The two became friends and business partners.

On the day that Christiane Amanpour was interviewing her, Iphigenia had invited these same neighbors into her home and was serving them dinner. That’s right -- she was serving dinner to the man who killed her husband and children. When asked how she found it in her heart to forgive, Iphigenia said simply, “I am a Christian, and I pray a lot."1

Left to our human resources, this kind of love and forgiveness would be inconceivable. But it is possible because of the one who loves us fully and completely, the one who loves us to the end, even to the cross and grave and back.

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1http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/05/15/amanpour.rwanda/

PRAYER OF THE DAY:

Holy Lord God,

Jesus washed his disciples’ feet as a sign of service and compassion. Show us how to live and love in service and with compassion, for the sake of all your children. Amen.

HYMNS:

“Jesus, priceless treasure” (Author: Catherine Winkworth; Author: Johann Franck (1653))

1. Jesus, priceless treasure,

source of purest pleasure,

friend most sure and true:

long my heart was burning,

fainting much and yearning,

thirsting, Lord, for you.

Yours I am, O spotless Lamb,

so will I let nothing hide you,

seek no joy beside you!

2. Let your arms enfold me:

those who try to wound me

cannot reach me here.

Though the earth be shaking,

every heart be quaking,

Jesus calms my fear.

Fires may flash and thunder crash;

yea, though sin and hell assail me,

Jesus will not fail me.

3. Hence, all worldly treasure!

Jesus is my pleasure,

Jesus is my choice.

Hence, all empty glory!

What to me your story

told with tempting voice?

Pain or loss or shame or cross

shall not from my Savior move me,

since he chose to love me.

4. Banish thoughts of sadness,

for the Lord of gladness,

Jesus, enters in;

though the clouds may gather,

those who love the Savior

still have peace within.

Though I bear much sorrow here,

still in you lies purest pleasure,

Jesus, priceless treasure!

“God, whose giving knows no ending” (Author: Robert L. Edwards (1961))

1. God, whose giving knows no ending,

from your rich and endless store--

nature's wonder, Jesus' wisdom,

costly cross, grave's shattered door--

gifted by you, we turn to you,

offering up ourselves in praise;

thankful song shall rise forever,

gracious Donor of our days.

2. Skills and time are ours for pressing

toward the goals of Christ, your Son:

all at peace in health and freedom,

races joined, the Church made one.

Now direct our daily labor,

lest we strive for self alone.

Born with talents, make us servants

fit to answer at your throne.

3. Treasure, too, you have entrusted,

gain through powers your grace conferred,

ours to use for home and kindred,

and to spread the gospel word.

Open wide our hands in sharing,

as we heed Christ's ageless call,

healing, teaching, and reclaiming,

serving you by loving all.

“Lord, whose love in humble service” (Author: Albert F. Bayly (1961))

1.  Lord, whose love through humble service

    Bore the weight of human need,

    Who upon the cross, forsaken,

    Offered mercy's perfect deed,

    We, Your servants, bring the worship

    Not of voice alone, but heart,

    Consecrating to Your purpose

    Every gift that You impart.

2.  Still Your children wander homeless;

    Still the hungry cry for bread;

    Still the captives long for freedom;

    Still in grief we mourn our dead.

    As, O Lord, Your deep compassion

    Healed the sick and freed the soul,

    Use the love Your Spirit kindles

    Still to save and make us whole.

3.  As we worship, grant us vision,

    Till Your love's revealing light,

    In its height and depth and greatness,

    Dawns upon our quickened sight,

    Making known the needs and burdens

    Your compassion bids us bear,

    Stirring us to tireless striving,

    Your abundant life to share.

4.  Called from worship to Your service,

    Forth in Your dear name we go,

    To the child, the youth, the aged,

    Love in living deeds to show;

    Hope and health, goodwill and comfort,

    Counsel, aid, and peace we give,

    That Your servants, Lord, in freedom

    May Your mercy know and live.

CHORAL:

“Amazing grace” John Bertalot

1. Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

2. T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.

And Grace, my fears relieved.

How precious did that Grace appear

The hour I first believed.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

3. Through many dangers, toils and snares

I have already come;

'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far

and Grace will lead me home.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

4. The Lord has promised good to me.

His word my hope secures.

He will my shield and portion be,

As long as life endures.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

5. Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,

And mortal life shall cease,

I shall possess within the veil,

A life of joy and peace.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

6. When we've been here ten thousand years

Bright shining as the sun.

We've no less days to sing God's praise

Than when we've first begun.

Chorus:

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,

That saved a wretch like me.

I once was lost but now am found,

Was blind, but now I see.

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John Wesley’s Commentary-Notes for:

John 13:1-17

Verse 1. Before the feast - Namely, on Wednesday, in the paschal week. Having loved his own - His apostles, he loved them to the end - Of his life.

Verse 2. Having now - Probably now first.

Verse 3. Jesus knowing - Though conscious of his own greatness, thus humbled himself.

Verse 4. Layeth aside his garments - That part of them which would have hindered him.

Verse 5. Into the basin - A large vessel was usually placed for this very purpose, wherever the Jews supped.

Verse 7. What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter - We do not now know perfectly any of his works, either of creation, providence, or grace. It is enough that we can love and obey now, and that we shall know hereafter.

Verse 8. If I wash thee not - If thou dost not submit to my will, thou hast no part with me - Thou art not my disciple. In a more general sense it may mean, If I do not wash thee in my blood, and purify thee by my Spirit, thou canst have no communion with me, nor any share in the blessings of my kingdom.

Verse 9. Lord, not my feet only - How fain would man be wiser than God! Yet this was well meant, though ignorant earnestness.

Verse 10. And so ye, having been already cleansed, need only to wash your feet - That is, to walk holy and undefiled.

Verse 14. Ye ought also to wash one another's feet - And why did they not? Why do we not read of any one apostle ever washing the feet of any other? Because they understood the Lord better. They knew he never designed that this should be literally taken. He designed to teach them the great lesson of humble love, as well as to confer inward purity upon them. And hereby he teaches us,

1. In every possible way to assist each other in attaining that purity;

2. To wash each other's feet, by performing all sorts of good offices to each other, even those of the lowest kind, when opportunity serves, and the necessity of any calls for them.

Verse 16. The servant is not greater than his Lord - Nor therefore ought to think much of either doing or suffering the same things.

Psalms 51:7-12

Verse 7. Hyssop - As lepers, are by thy appointment purified by the use of hyssop and other things, so do thou cleanse me a leprous and polluted creature, by thy grace, and by that blood of Christ, which is signified by those ceremonial usages.

Verse 8. Joy - By thy spirit, seal the pardon of my sins on my conscience, which will fill me with joy. Rejoice - That my heart which hath been sorely wounded may be comforted.

Verse 10. Create - Work in me an holy frame of heart, whereby my inward filth may be purged away. Right - Hebrew. firm or constant, that my resolution may be fixed and unmoveable. Spirit - Temper or disposition of soul.

Verse 12. The joy - The comfortable sense of thy saving grace, promised and vouchsafed to me, both for my present and everlasting salvation. Free - Or, ingenuous, or liberal, or princely. Which he seems to oppose to his own base and illiberal and disingenuous and servile spirit, which he had discovered in his wicked practices: a spirit, which may free me from the bondage of sin, and enable me chearfully to run the way of God's precepts.

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